Safegarding and Child Protection Policy

The goal of this document is to ensure everyone’s safety and well-being at every event is cared for. While young people and vulnerable adults are of a particulate priority, this policy ensure’s everyone’s safety and well-being is cared for.

As a Menirs Fate player event where applicable we also follow the Menhirs Fate​ safeguarding policy and encourage all to read it: https://www.menhirsfate.com/policies/#tab-safeguardingpolicy

It should also be noted that while the event is talking place on a school site we are not a childcare organisation as defined by the protection of children act 1999. Anyone under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a suitable parent/carer who will take responsibility for the young person.

Nominated Child Protection Officers

The event officers responsible for being informed about any allegations of child abuse or safeguarding breaches and for taking necessary actions are Mark Williamson and Becky Townend.

Safeguarding Lead

In the event of any safeguarding concerns Mark Williamson must be contacted as soon as possible. They will be on-site at all times but can also be contacted before, during and after any event. Mark works with children and has gone through a DBS check to ensure they are safe to work with children on the school site the event is taking place at. (Please note the school is in no way associated with this event.)

Becky Townend will also be available if you have any safeguarding concerns to report.

Email: [email protected]
Phone: 07308 883448

Where to escalate concerns too

In the event your concern is about Mark Williamson please contact Becky Townend. They will also be onsite at all times. Likewise please contact Mark if it’s in regards to Becky.

The Police (https://www.police.uk/pu/contact-us/what-and-how-to-report/how-to-report/) or National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (https://www.nspcc.org.uk/about-us/) can also be contacted if you believe your concern is not being addressed or you believe it is warranted.

There are 4 main types of abuse that can be identified. A summery and there definitions are:

Physical: May involve hitting, shaking, throwing, poisoning, burning or scalding, drowning, suffocating or otherwise causing physical harm. Physical harm may also be caused when someone fabricates the symptoms of, or deliberately induces, illness in a child or vulnerable person.

Emotional: The persistent emotional maltreatment of a child or a vulnerable person such as to cause severe and adverse effects on the child’s or vulnerable person’s emotional development; may involve conveying that they are worthless or unloved, inadequate, or valued only insofar as they meet the needs of another person, not giving them opportunities to express their views, deliberately silencing them or ‘making fun’ of what they say or how they communicate, age or developmentally inappropriate expectations being imposed, interactions that are beyond their developmental capability as well as over protection and limitation of exploration and learning, or preventing them from participating in normal social interaction, seeing or hearing the ill-treatment of another, serious bullying (including cyber-bullying), causing them frequently to feel frightened or in danger, or exploitation or corruption.

Sexual: Forcing or enticing a someone to take part in sexual activities, not necessarily involving a high level of violence, whether or not the person is aware of what is happening; may involve physical contact, including penetrative or non-penetrative acts, non-physical contact, grooming a child or vulnerable person in preparation for abuse, and online sexual abuse.

Neglect: The persistent failure to meet a child’s or or vulnerable person’s basic physical and/or psychological needs, likely to result in the serious impairment of the persons health or development; may involve failure to provide adequate food, clothing and shelter, failure to protect a child or a vulnerable person from physical and emotional harm or danger, failure to ensure adequate supervision, failure to ensure access to appropriate medical care or treatment, and failure to meet a child’s basic emotional needs.

This guidance is intended to assist you if you find yourself involved in a potential child protection situation.

• Always stop and listen immediately to someone who wants to disclose incidents or suspicions of abuse, and remain calm.
• Take what is said seriously; it is uncommon for children to make false allegations.
• If possible, take brief notes of what they are telling you while they are speaking—these may be crucial for recalling details later.
• Preserve your original notes, no matter how rough; the initial account may be more important than a tidied or improved version created later. If you can’t write at the time, document what was said as soon as possible afterwards.
• Never promise to keep what is said confidential or secret. If informed about abuse, you are obligated to report it so that action can be taken.
• Reassure the individual that only those who need to know will be informed.
• Avoid asking leading questions that could suggest your own ideas about what might have happened (e.g., “Did they do XYZ to you?”). Instead, ask open-ended questions like “What do you want to tell me?” or “Is there anything else you want to say?”
• Allow the child to speak at their own pace and reassure them that they have done the right thing by telling you.
• Inform the child of the next steps and with whom the information will be shared.
• Never attempt to conduct an investigation of suspected or alleged abuse by interviewing individuals yourself; you could cause further harm and jeopardise potential criminal proceedings. This is a task for a professional working with a Child Protection agency, following a referral from the event’s nominated child protection officer.

It is essential that all victims are reassured that they are being taken seriously, regardless of how long it has taken them to come forward, and that they will be supported and kept safe.

It is important to understand that children and vulnerable people may not find it easy to report their abuse verbally. They can show signs or act in ways that they hope others will notice and react to. In some cases, the victim may not make a direct report. For example, a friend may make a report, or someone may overhear a conversation that suggests a person has been harmed or a person’s own behaviour might indicate that something is wrong.

if anyone has any concerns about someones welfare, they should act on them immediately rather than wait to be told.

Lute goblin will always prioritise safeguarding above all else. We reserve the right to ban/remove anyone from our games and site at any time for any reason. You are expected to act in a respectful and inclusive manner towards everyone.
We require all attending the event to attend the safety briefing at the start of the event to ensure everyone is aware of the contents of this policy and any other rules or policy’s for the event.

Failure to follow instructions may result in the game being stopped and police involvement.